Tarkett's David Cassady (L) With Nafco Display

By Louis Iannaco
Florence, Ala.—At its plant here recently, Tarkett’s Nafco division announced the largest product launch in its history. Utilizing the latest in technology, years of research and development, and investing between $5 million and $7 million during the last five years into its plant, the company has added to the Nafco by Tarkett brand portfolio by coming up with more new designs and looks than ever before—mimicking everything from hardwood flooring to ceramic tile.

“We know want type of product we want to deliver,” said Pierre Lefort, general manager, vice president, residential division. “We take a lot of pride in both our people and our product. To be a winner, it takes more than sales, it takes product development and research.”

With that, the company, which has placed more than 8,500 PermaStone displays alone in the last few years, introduced its largest product launch ever with a total of 31 SKUs, including new catalogs, a new mini-modular display, and a consumer adverrtising campaign.

“The launch emphasizes our innovative capabilities with new textures, edge treatments and an .080 gauge plank,” said David Cassady, marketing director, residential division. “We’ve performed a complete overhaul of Nafco planks to add better visuals with colors and textures to compete with today’s hardwood market. With our introduction of new tile, we are offering consumers new visuals in 12-in. tile with a narrow, 1/8-in. Grout-Fit edge treatment.”

In its Good Living Plank Collection, the company introduced its .080 gauge plank to complete its goal of all Nafco products to be made in U.S.A., noted Cassady. The collection features a weather wood texture, complete with Nafco’s Tritonite finish and crimped edge.

The collection, retailing from between $1.99 and $2.19, features 6X36-in. planks in Maize, Clove, Nutmeg and Amber; and 3X36-in. planks available in Cinnamon, Chestnut, Natural Oak and Honey Oak.

In its Better Tile Collection, retailing from between $3.39 and $3.99, Nafco has two offerings—Appalachian Slate Collection and Modena Marble.

The Applalachian Slate Collection is designed to accurately depict the look of natural slate, includes the company’s new 1/8-in. GroutFit for better visual on its 12-in. tile, and features Tritonite ceramic technology. The collection comes in five designer colors: Teton, Topaz, Sunset, Tawny and Mercury.

Modena Marble, designed to be a recreation of Italian marble, also features Nafco’s 1/8-in. GroutFit and Tritonite ceramic technology. Its four colors are Noce, Volcanic Gold, Imperial Beige and Pewter.

The Better Living Plank Collection, retailing from $3.99 to $4.29, includes the Latitudes, Savannah Oak and Hand Scraped Collections. Latitudes features the look of naturally aged exotic woods from South America, along with new beveled edges for an authentic plank look, Tritonite ceramic technology and a new 4-in. width. Patterns include Jatoba, Santos Mahogany, Lapacho and Brazilian Maple.

The Savannah Oak collection consists of “the most popular wood tones and heavy texture in the market,” noted Cassady, a new beveled edge treatment for a more realistic look and the Tritonite technology. Its colors include Butterscotch, Sangria, Vintage Brown and Cappucino.

The Hand Scraped Collection represent Nafco’s first handscraped-look products. It features deep colors, crimped edges and the Tritonite technology. The 6X36-in. planks have a rolled edge treatment and
sell for up $4.99. It is available in six colors: Brandy, Espresso, Saddle, Sierra, Mocha and Barley.

To go along with its product introduction, Nafco is also offering a 2006 spring launch promotion in which a $1,000 prize for each winner will be awarded. There will be a total of six winners; three among its retail customers and three for distributor representatives. Anyone entering the contest must answer four questions about the new product launch. Winners will be drawn on Aug. 18.

“We’ve got so many unique features with these products that we want to offer an extra incentive,” said Cassady of the promotion.

For more information on the promotion, call 256/718-5279.

Nafco is also debuting a brand new consumer catalog describing its products, their applications, warranty information and the entire Nafco story, as well as a product chart for retailers complete with an SKU list, colors and specifications.

To accompany the spring product launch, Nafco will also be doing a consumer advertising campaign. Advertising will appear in Southern Accent magazine in July and August, as well as Coastal Living magazine throughout the month of June.

“We will be a doing a mailing to all our retailers letting them know that we are supporting them in the magazines,” said Cassady.

Finally, Nafco is offering a mini-modular display for its PermaStone modular collection. “We’ve put out many big modular units,” concluded Cassady, “we needed a vehicle for more market penetration, something we could put out a lot. We came up with this smaller unit which takes up four square feet. It’s about as small as can be and has a board for every series that we have in modular, all three sizes. It shows how GroutFit works. It’s a very simple little display, with our objective being to get as many of them out as possible.”

For more on Tarkett and its Nafco product line, call 800/227-4662.